Warrior of the Flame
by Pricat
Summary: Artie, Shrek, Snowgre and me become Dragon Warriors, protectors of Chinese legend but a dangerous foe is up to destroying Duloc...
1. It Begins

Warriors of Flame

Ch 1

It was a peaceful night in Duloc but in the swamp Shrek was having weird dreams.

In them he and Artie were in a Chinese temple full of incensed candles.

Lotus flowers were there too.

Suddenly they heard strange chanting and music as a scroll appeared and unfolded itself.

"What is this?" Artie asked worriedly.

"_Don't be afraid. _

_I won't hurt you. I am Shifu the dragon spirit of this scroll._

_For many years the realm you live in has been protected by warriors with great mystical powers and great wisdom._

_But now after years of waiting, the time of the Dragon Warriors has came once more._

_You and Shrek are the Dragon Warriors for Duloc along with two others you care about._

_Good luck." _He told them.

"Wait! What does it mean?" Shrek asked him.

"_You'll find out in time." _Shifu answered as he vanished.

It was late in the morning when he woke up.

Fiona, Artie and Snowgre were already up along with Leah.

"Hey there Sleeping Beauty what's up?

You look like… Where did those kanji markings come from on you and Snowgre and Artie?

They look cool." Leah told him.

"What do you mean by that?" Shrek asked her worried.

He looked in the mirror. There were kanji marks over his body and a slender purple dragon on his face.

It's tail curled around his eyes.

Artie's was the same but with a green dragon and Snowgre had a dark blue dragon.

"It must've have something to do with the dream I had last night." Shrek said to them.

"Was it to do with a Chinese temple and a weird scroll inhabited by a dragon spirit?" they heard somebody ask and turned around.

It was Carley.

She had Chinese kanjis over her body and a black dragon on her face with fire coming from it's mouth.

"… Yes we did.

You're one too?" Artie said to her.

She nodded in reply. She looked nervous.

"I don't get it.

What does it mean?" Fiona asked.

"We're Dragon Warriors, protectors of legend.

It's my theory that they protected Duloc until Farquaad showed up.

I understand Carley being one because." Shrek said.

"Because what?" Leah asked curious.

"She was born in the Year of the Dragon in Chinese but Artie, me and Snowg?

I don't get it." He answered.

Fiona saw Leah smirk at that.

But a shadowy foe had been released by the Ogre Protection Unit from a Japanese scroll.

His name was Lai-san master of hate.

"So Shifu summoned new Dragon Warriors, eh?

I'll destroy them easily!" he thought as his four eye slits glowed red.

He was an Oni demon and very powerful. He had almost destroyed Duloc and Japan if it wasn't for the Dragon Warriors.

They'd combined their powers to seal him in a scroll but hid it so nobody could find it and free him...


	2. A Vision of Darkness

Warriors of Flame

Ch 2

Snowgre was worried that night as he and the others were sitting around a camp fire outside the swamp house.

He knew that being a Dragon Warrior was a great honour along with Artie, Shrek and Carley but they knew it would be hard.

"Don't worry we'll help out even though we're not Dragon Warriors." Fiona told him.

"Thanks guys." Artie replied to her.

"Hey guys

What's going on?" a voice told them.

It was Jables. He was an old friend of theirs.

He'd helped them destroy an evil Rock Demon from destroying the world.

"We haven't seen you in a long while.

What're you doing here?" Fiona asked after a group hug.

"Aww that was nice.

I heard some Dragon Warriors were in your neck of the woods." He answered sitting down next to Snowgre.

"How… do you know about the Dragon Warriors?" Leah asked him.

"I am the Music teacher at Worchester so Merlin told me.

He seemed really down." Jables answered.

He saw the kanji markings on his friends and smiled.

"_So Shifu wants me to help train them in case that Oni demon breaks loose?_

_I'll try my best." _He thought looking into the fire thoughtfully.

Shrek saw a look of wiseness in his eyes.

"What's on his mind?

It must be something to do with the Dragon Warriors." He mused as Jables poured a green liquid into paper cups.

"_What is this stuff?_

_It looks really funny."_ Artie thought to himself.

"Don't worry it's not poison.

It's Universe Juice.

It 's what the cosmos drink when excited or happy.

My master taught me how to make it." He replied to him.

Fiona and the others drank it.

It tasted nice.

"Oh man that's some Universe Juice!

The cosmos got something right." Shrek told Jables.

Later that night Jables heard moaning come from Leah and Carley's room in the swamp house.

Carley was flying through the night sky feeling free.

She was wearing a long black kimono.

Suddenly she began to change, her eyes becoming eye slits, her skin became black scales and her body was more slender than ever.

She had become the Shadow Dragon Warrior like the marking on her face.

She then saw Leah standing on the ground. She looked worried.

"Help me!" she said fearfully. A strange darkness grabbed Leah and disappeared.

"You are too late Dragon Warrior. She will be mine!

_She is my vessel!" it told her vanishing…_

Leah saw tears in her eyes as she woke up.

"Are you okay?

W-What did you see?" Jables asked softly.

"I was flying through the sky free as a bird and I became the Shadow Dragon but then Leah…

She was in danger. A demon came and took her.

He said she was his vessel.

What if it was a vision?" Caley told him.

"I'm not sure. Maybe the Universe Juice did this.

Sometimes it does dtrange things to those who don't drink all the time." Jables told her.

Leah had a feeling it wasn't his real answer.

"We need to talk okay?

But not in here." She said.

Jables agreed as they walked out of the room.

Artie and the others joined him in the main room.

"What's going on?" Fiona asked curious.

"Your friend had a vision that Lai-san would take Leah as his vessel.

I had a feeling this would happen like before." Jables told them.

"What're you talking about like before?

I don't understand." Snowgre told him.

"Alright I guess there's no hiding it anymore.

I was a Dragon Warrior along with others.

We fought off Lai-san and sealed him in a scroll but hid it where nobody would ever find it.

But it looks like somebody found it and released him." Jables explained to him.

Fiona and the others gasped at that.

"The Dragon Warriors have mystical power but in every generation there is a Shadow Dragon Warrior.

The Shadow Dragon is very powerful but the warrior can't control it's power for fear of hurting those they love.

That's what worries me about Carley.

She's the Shadow Dragon Warrior.

She has trouble being herself.

We must help her." He replied to her.

Leah then walked into her and her friend's room.

She was worried about what Jables had said.

She found somebody outside the swamp house. Jables smiled as he came with her into the house.

"Hey Jables what's up?" Mike asked hugging him along with Shrek and Fiona.

"Dragon Warrior business. Some of our friends are the new Dragon Warriors." Jables answered him.

"Ah old times. I hope they do as well as we did back in the day." Mike replied to him.

Shrek watched as Leah went into the room she and Carley shared.

She saw her friend sitting on the bed in a ball.

"Hey how're you since a while ago?

Jables told us sime... important stuff about the Dragon Warriors." she asked wrapping her arms around her as they kissed.

"When you left for a while I felt awful but now I feel better now that you're back.

It wasn't the juice was it?" Carley replied to her.

"No it wasn't. We'll talk about it in the morning, okay?" Leah said as her friend fell asleep.

Shrek walked in. He had heard what Leah had said but was worried.

"Don't worry she'll be okay. We'd better go back to the others." he told her.

She nodded as they walked out of the room.

Lai-san cackled as he saw Leah.

"Why care about them because soon you'll be mine!" he thought as he moved into the shadows surrounding the swamp...


	3. Demon Taking Her Prisoner

Warriors of the Flame

Ch 3

Lai- san cackled as he entered the swamp.

He wanted the power of the Shadow Dragon but knew that Carley wouldn't give it to him.

"_That's why I want your friend._

_You'd do anything for her." _He thought as he entered Leah and Carley's room.

Leah woke up. She felt a dark force in the room.

"Who's there?

Show yourself!" she yelled.

Lai-san appeared. He was a muscle bound demon.

"You're the… demon Jables told us about!" she said.

"_Yes I am._

_He thought he and his friends got rid of me, they failed!_

_All I want is the Shadow Dragon power but it's in your weak little friend." _He replied as he sank his claws into her arm.

"Carley help!

Lai-san's here.

Can't you hear me?" she said as the Oni demon entered her like goo.

"_It's no use._

_She's asleep thanks to the spiked Universe Juice I gave her._

_Jables was unaware I'd tampered with his recipe by putting Nightmare Berries in it." _He told her in her head.

"I won't help you, no matter what you say!" Leah protested.

"_I think you will or… your friend will suffer." _He replied to her.

Tears welled in her eyes at that.

"Fine I'll help but just to keep Carley safe from you." She replied to him.

Her eyes then glowed with red light…

Jables then ran into Carley and Leah's room. He'd a very bad feeling as he saw Leah wasn't there.

"He spiked Carley and the other's Universe Juice so they're too asleep to hear me or Leah!

I hope Lai-san hasn't hurt her." he thought as he saw Carley wake up after performing an ancient spell to wake her up.

"Where's Leah? I... heard her calling for help and I couldn't do anything.

I'm just a loser. I don't deserve to have the Shadow Dragon's power." she replied softly.

"No way are you a loser.

You deserve the Shadow Dragon's power because you care about others and you have a big heart.

Love and friendship is your true powers.

I saw what you did taking care of Una like that." Jables reassured her.

A smile crossed her face at that.

"What's going on in here?" someone asked them.

It was Shrek.

"You're awake! I thought the Universe Juice knocked you out." Carley said to him.

"No way!

Lai-san captured Leah, didn't he?" he replied after hugging her.

"Yes he took over her like in my vision." she answered.

Anger pulsated through him at that and his eyes glowed with green light.

He saw his friends stare at him.

"What? What's happened to me?" he said but it sounded like growling.

"You assumed dragon form.

I was hoping he and the others would do this." Jables told him.

His green skin had became scales, long green whiskers ran from his nose, his eyes had become brown eye slits.

He was slender in dragon form.

"H-How did I become this?" Shrek asked worried.

"It's the second form of a Dragon Warrior. The first form is normal body in Dragon Warrior battle gear but this is the second and most powerful form.

The others will be able to do this too in time when they believe in themselves.

The Shadow Dragon Warrior is the leader." Jables explained to them.

Carley was nervous at that.

Shrek saw fear in her eyes.

"I-I'm not the leader type." she told them.

"I know but in time you will be and a great one leading the others into battle against Lai-san.

The other Dragon Warriors and I believe in you." Jables replied.

A sad smile crossed her face at that.

Leah watched them from the shadows. She was hiding in China.

"I'm sorry about this but there's no choice.

I did it to save you." she told herself as Lai-san slept within her...

Artie and the others woke up hearing sounds of battle as the sun rose in the sky.

"What's going on? Is it Lai-san?

Where's Leah?" Snowgre asked them as he walked out of his room.

"I don't know but we're gonna find out!" Fiona answered as they went out there.

Jables, Carley and Shrek were training.

They were fighting, trying to summon the strength within.

"Morning guys what's up?" Shrek asked as they sat on the ground.

"We were worried. We thought we were under attack.

Where's Leah?" Fiona told them.

"We'll talk about Leah later.

We were training since we couldn't sleep.

I'm teaching them to find the strength within to use their Dragon Warrior powers." Jables told her.

Snowgre didn't understand what he meant about Leah...


End file.
